Photographs
by JavaForever
Summary: Some nice Rory/Luke bonding with a little JavaJunkie thrown in for good measure! It's the happy ending/middle we all wished for on the show! Enjoy!


A/N: So I'm pulling out a prompt from long ago to get back into the swing of writing. I've been traveling more and more to the fluffy side of life. As much as I love angst, it can become tiring. In conclusion, here is a Rory/Luke bonding fic for your enjoyment! It's Christmas time and Luke has some special presents for Rory! So enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls! I own a camera though. Not Rory's camera…

Photographs

You sigh, staring down at the thick leather-bound album in her hands. It's by far the best Christmas present you could have asked for. You smile and open to the first page. A picture of your mother with her arm around you in front of the potting shed. You had to be about five in that picture, while your mother was turning 21.

"_Mommy, mommy!" you yell, jumping onto the bed. "Wake up! It's your birthday!" Your mother, rather than jumping for joy, groans and rolls over. "Mommy!" you call again. "Come on! Mia's here!" Those words do the job for you. She jumps out of bed and runs for the bathroom. Quickly, she throws on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Grabbing her jacket and your arm, she runs out the door._

"_Mia!" she exclaims, narrowly avoiding a collision with the woman._

"_Lorelai! Please, slow down," she says as she places a hand on your mom's shoulder. "Now, what I came here to do is get a picture of the birthday girl. And maybe give her a present. What do you say?" Your mom sighs._

"_But Mia, I haven't even brushed my hair yet."_

"_That doesn't matter. Now come here and let me take your picture. Humor me."_

_Your mom sighs and leads you to the front of the potting shed. "Alright," Mia says. "Smile!" You break into a large grin and lean against your mom. The flash goes off._

You sigh and turn the page. Another picture of you with your mother, a few of you by yourself, one of you with your grandparents, but then a different picture jumps out at you. It's different than all the others; it's special.

_You sigh heavily crossing the street, and entering the door to the diner. Rolling your eyes, you plop down onto a stool at the counter. You drum your fingers impatiently and glance around looking for a man carrying a coffee pot. These are the times when you wish you had an endless supply of coffee right in front of you. Everything is going wrong. You have no idea why, but things with your boyfriend have gone awry, school is the hardest it's ever been, and there is nothing you can do about it. Coffee, and the man supplying it, is the only thing that will save you now._

_Finally, someone sets a coffee cup down next to you and begins to fill it up. You smile gratefully, taking a long sip. Setting the cup down, you rest your head on the countertop._

_"Everything okay?" A voice asks from your side. You glance up and sigh._

_"Yeah," you say. It sounds unconvincing even to your own ears. He raises his eyebrows at you. "No,"_

_He walks around the counter and leans against it, facing you. He hasn't said anything, and yet you know that he's waiting for you to speak. "School is just crazy," you offer as explanation. "Everything is happening at once. The end of the school year is coming too quickly, and I can't keep up."_

_He leans across the counter towards you, and in a distinctly un-characteristic move, pats your arm and smiles at you. "You'll catch up. You're smart, you'll do just fine." Just then, a flash goes off to your right._

You laugh, remembering how mad he was at your mom for taking that picture. He tried to refuse her coffee. It was so long ago. Almost ten years. In some ways, it feels like just yesterday, but in other ways, you can tell that it's been ten years.

You look around and take in the scattered appearance of the living room. Toys, presents, and wrapping paper lay strewn everywhere. And yet, it's the home and family you've always wanted. You feel a tap on your shoulder, and you jump slightly and turn around.

"Hey," he says quietly. "I wanted to give you this. It's just from me. Your mom has no idea I even bought it." He pulls out a wrapped present from behind his back and hands it to you. You quickly tear the paper off and pull out a brand new digital camera.

"Luke," you say uncertainly. "This had to have been really expensive,"

He waves it off and shrugs. "Not that much."

"Are you sure?"

"Please, I wanted to give it to you."

You decide to just accept the present rather than argue over it, and you begin to remove the cardboard box it's in. Finally, the camera is unwrapped and set up. Suddenly, the living room floods with people. Your mom, your step-dad, your grandparents, and all your other family.

"Wait!" you call anxiously. "Can everyone just gather together? I want to take a picture of the family." With groans and eye rolling, everyone gathers into a bunch in front of the Christmas tree.

You smile and take it all in. All these people are part of that family you belong to. Your mother and step-father leaning against each other. Your half-brother giving your sister bunny ears while she tries to smack him on the head. Your grandparents standing ramrod straight looking so very out of place. Your aunt trying to keep her insane husband and her slightly insane daughter from fighting. It may not be normal, it may be completely mixed up and crazy, but it's your family. You love them with all your heart. The timer on the camera is set now. You hurry to take your place in the group. Right smack in the middle of it all. While you have the chance, you turn to your step-dad and place a quick kiss on his cheek, murmuring a thank you. Just as you are about to pull back, the flash goes off, capturing you all permanently on film.

The End.


End file.
